All the Good Songs

For his first album of non-original work, Bruce Springsteen recorded a loving, joyous homage to Pete Seeger, including a wild take on one of the country’s most familiar songs.

A one-off novelty song that became the National Anthem of Halloween, Bobby Pickett’s 1962 delight secured his everlasting fame, even if he worked most of his life to be remembered for more.

Years before the term “going viral” entered the lexicon, M.I.A.’s thumping, hypnotic debut single become one of the first examples of music sharing on a global scale and the Internet’s staggering power to launch careers.

In 1949, the Cincinnati label King Records released two versions of this tune: a twangy country version, and a screaming jump blues number by saxophonist Bull Moose Jackson. In the process, they produced one of the skeleton keys to rock …

In 1963, with his star on the rise, Sam Cooke went to a nightclub in Miami to record a live album in front of his fans. The result was one of the great concert recordings in history, and one that …

Leaning hard into a mash up of 60’s psychadelia, surf rock and dance, the B-52’s burst onto the scene with this utterly bizarre beach party fantasy. (Image: George Dubose)

Performing at the height of her powers in 1970, Aretha Franklin turned Paul Simon’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water” into a gospel number of extraordinary power. (image: Robert Altman/Getty Archives)

Godfathers of the Alternative scene, creators of Lollapalooza, and over and done with (for a time) far too soon, Jane’s Addiction broke through massively on this joyous ode to petty theft.

For Track 1 of my mixtape, the song I’ve listened to more than any other in my life, and the one song I know I loved before I even remember hearing it.

All the Good Songs is a brand new series where I’ll break down a series of songs and the impact they’ve had on music, and on my own life. Read the introduction here.